The Art of Deception
by AW Science Geek
Summary: With the change of a single moment, Draco and Harry become allies rather than enemies. As the Second Wizarding War nears its height, the two friends must cope with the loss of their loved ones, the treachery of their friends, and the looming threat of Voldemort's rise to power. Sixth year (with flashbacks) AU. M for violent scenes.
1. Explanation and Disclaimer

Hello everyone!

So, this isn't the first chapter (it needs to be edited a bit before being posted), but it is an explanation of sorts. This story is written by me (AW Science Geek), Snape'sPaige394, and Souloflead. Originally, we had all been working on Souloflead's _The Inevitability of Betrayal_, but we ran into some issues with the amount of romance in a story souloflead intended to be darker. Since souloflead wanted to focus on some different aspects of her story, we agreed to take the chunks we had written originally for TIOB and start a new story, now called _The Art of Deception_. So, in the beginning, if you find some similarities between Souloflead's story and this one, that's because it originally started as one story. We're writing a new beginning to this story, which is why the first chapter can't be posted yet, but soon as that's done, we'll be on our way.

Also, since I'm unfortunately dedicating a whole "chapter" to an explanation, might as well get the disclaimer out of the way. Disclaimer: We do not own anything that you recognize from JK Rowling's masterpiece (though we have issues with her romantic pairings, which is why we're writing a fanfiction).

We're excited to begin this story, so keep an eye out for the first chapter, which is coming soon! Happy reading!

Best, AW Science Geek.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

_Harry awkwardly bumbled his way through the train's hallway, peering into each compartment, when he slammed into another body._

"_Oh gosh, I'm really sorry," Harry apologized as he straightened his glasses. He groaned as he noticed a distinctive crack, marring his vision._

"_Sorry, that was my fault. Should've looked where I was going," the other boy replied, and Harry looked up to see the same blonde boy he had run into at Madame Malkin's. The blonde stuck his hand out. "Draco Malfoy. We ran into each other at Madame Malkins?"_

"_Yes, I remember," Harry smiled, shaking his hand. "Harry Potter."_

_Draco's eyes widened, but seeing Harry's slightly disparaged expression, chose not to comment. "Oh no, I've broken your glasses!" Draco frowned._

"_It's all right. They're pretty cheap, anyway," Harry grunted._

"_Well, I'm sure one of the professors can fix it when we get to Hogwarts," Draco sighed. "Want to sit with me? I know a few other blokes, and we're just over there," Draco pointed to the compartment just behind Harry._

"_Sure! I'd love to," Harry smiled. The boy didn't seem nearly as arrogant as he did in Madame Malkin's shop: the blonde was beginning to grow on him._

"_C'mon then."_

_Draco opened the door, where three other boys were lying lazily about._

"_Draco!" a very tanned boy smiled. "Glad you could make it."_

_The other boys merely grunted, and then returned to stuffing their faces with various sweets._

"_Boys," Draco said authoritatively. "This is Harry Potter. That's Greg, Vince, and Blaise."_

"_Hello," Harry waved shyly._

"You're _Harry Potter?" the boy, Blaise, asked with wonder._

"_Yeah," Harry answered shyly._

"_Well, welcome," Blaise grinned._

_Harry fell into easy conversation with Draco and Blaise, who were both extremely curious about his life in the muggle world. Greg and Vince, however, seemed to be more content with eating their way through their pile of candies. They only paused in their furious chewing when the candy cart came around, continuing to add to their hefty goodies sack._

_Harry was in the middle of asking Draco and Blaise about their families when the door slid open, and a girl with enormously bushy hair stood in front of them._

"_Sorry, but has anyone seen a toad?" she asked, rather aloofly._

"_A toad?" Harry asked confusedly._

"_His name is Trevor," a voice piped up from behind the girl, and she moved out of the way. A small, sorry excuse of a boy stood there shyly, cowering under the five boys' stares._

"_No, sorry. Unless you're looking for chocolate frogs," Draco rolled his eyes towards Vince and Greg's candy stash._

"_Well, thanks," the brown haired girl sighed. As she was about to leave, she stopped, and frowning, turned towards Harry._

"_Your glasses are broken," she stated._

"_Thanks for stating the obvious," Draco laughed, and Vince and Greg snickered._

"_Well, why haven't you fixed it, then?" she asked Harry, raising an eyebrow expectantly._

"_I can't exactly glue my glasses back together to fix the crack," Harry frowned._

"_No, silly, with magic! Here, _Oculus Reparo_!" she shouted, pointing her wand right between Harry's eyes. The cracked lens snapped back into place, and the crack suddenly disappeared. Looking immensely pleased with herself, the girl smiled. "That's better."_

"_Um, wow. Thanks," Harry stuttered a bit, still reeling from the display of magic._

_Draco had been eying the girl carefully, and finally stood up, offering his hand._

"_That was quite impressive. Draco Malfoy."_

_She took it a little arrogantly, smiling. "Hermione Granger."_

"_Hermione," the other boy, with the lost toad, shifted from foot to foot impatiently. "Trevor could be anywhere, by now."_

_Blaise, seeing Draco's gesture of friendship, smiled at Hermione's friend. "The name's Blaise Zabini, and you are?"_

"_Neville. Neville Longbottom," the boy almost whispered._

_Vince and Greg snickered, but Draco, Harry, and Blaise shot the two a series of glares._

"_Pleased to meet you, Neville. Good luck in finding your toad," Harry smiled._

"_Th-thanks," Neville stuttered, and the two moved onto the next compartment._

"_Draco," Vince began, speaking around a mouthful of sugar quills. "I've never heard of the last name _Granger _before."_

"_Think she's a mudblood?" Greg snickered. "Befriended a dirty one?"_

_Draco's lips pressed into a thin line._

_Harry's eyebrows drew together in confusion. "Sorry, what's a mudblood?"_

"_Someone who didn't originate from magical parents," Blaise explained, looking carefully at Draco._

"_Seems kind of a rude word," Harry added._

"_It's meant to be an insult," Vince sneered._

"_That's not very nice," Harry noted._

"_Duhh," Greg returned. Harry turned to Draco, who seemed to be deep in thought._

"_Tell me one thing, Greg, Vince" Draco began slowly. "If she is a mudblood, which is likely, how come she can already do spells that we've never heard of?"_

_Blaise nodded his assent, smiling at Draco approvingly. "She seems pretty powerful. It'd be stupid to have her as an enemy."_

_Vince and Greg, vacant as ever, frowned and returned to their candy._

"_I wouldn't use the word 'mudblood' again," Draco also mentioned in a low voice, so only Harry and Blaise heard. Harry smiled slightly. Draco didn't seem like a bad guy at all._

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" Draco whispered to Harry.

"Positive," Harry grinned, and then leapt out from behind the brick wall.

Draco followed after him, blocking spells as Harry dashed towards the next home. Draco fired a few stunners on his way, but focused his energy on defense. After all, Harry wasn't doing any of the work. Quickly, he ducked behind the corner, taking down another Death Eater before settling in the next hiding place.

Harry had opened the door into the home, grinning cheekily. "After you, mi'Lord."

Draco rolled his eyes before quickly grabbing Harry and rushing into the hallway. The door slammed behind them.

"We're in the middle of a war zone, and you're frolicking about? Maybe next time I won't cover your sorry arse," Draco spat, moving deeper into the house.

Harry sighed. "You're just upset because _they're _here, aren't you?"

"Of course I'm upset!" Draco cursed. "Did you _not_ see them? They were doing _nonverbal_ magic. How the hell are we _ever _going to match their... their prowess? We're bloody dead if they see us."

"Come on," Harry sighed. "Let's just go evacuate this squib and her family."

"Don't understand what the bloody point is," Draco grumbled. "Remind me, why are we sacrificing our lives for a bloody muggle family?"

"They're not muggles," Harry stated exasperatedly. "They _know_ about the magical world."

"Can they perform magic? No." Draco shot back as they climbed the stairs. "So what good are they? They're not going to help defend us, or join the Order."

"For your information, they're perfectly valuable informants. It's always good to have a pair of unseen eyes," Oliver Wood answered, stepping out of a bedroom. "Shut up, you lot. We could hear your bickering a mile away. Let's just get them evacuated, and then we can all go home for a nice cuppa tea. Paige, Harry, and I will take the boys and Damien. Draco and Alexandra, you take Athalia and Seraphine. We'll meet you at the house across from Snape's on Spinner's End. If any Death Eaters see you go anywhere near Snape's, obliviate them. If there are too many that see you there, kill them. That's an order. Remember, Voldemort tortures his own followers, and your obliviate spells will break. Keep Snape's cover at all costs. Move out," Oliver commanded, already leading the boys down the stairs. Athalia and Damien kissed each other quickly, before Paige and Harry ushered Damien in front of them.

Alexandra moved next to Draco, introducing Athalia and Seraphine.

"_They're_ here," she whispered to Draco, and Draco nodded solemnly.

"I saw," he muttered, before directing Athalia and Seraphine down the staircase and out another exit.

Alexandra bent down to Seraphine's level, comforting the small girl. "Seraphine, I need you to be very, very quiet. And fast. Like a bunny. Do you think you can do that?" she asked the girl. Seraphine pulled on her mother's skirt, and then nodded quickly.

"Do whatever we tell you to, okay? It's very important that you follow our directions," Draco added.

"Like Simon says?" the girl asked softly.

"Exactly," Athalia smiled down at her daughter.

"All right, let's head on out," Draco said sternly, and opened the side door.

The four ducked quickly around corners, taking the back alleys to Spinner's End, only a few streets down from the house. Just as they rounded the last corner, however, Draco and Alexandra spotted two Death Eaters in the middle of the street, watching the premises.

"Shit," Draco muttered.

"Okay," Alexandra began. "Athalia and Seraphina, only run to that house, over there, when we've distracted both the Death Eaters and they have their backs to you. Be very quiet. Actually, here," Alexandra cast a Disillusionment charm on both Athalia and Seraphine.

"Hopefully, this will keep you safe. Be careful," Alexandra warned, before following Draco and attacking.

"_Stupefy!_" Alexandra shouted, and Draco shot the same spell towards the other spell. Unfortunately, the Death Eaters wordlessly blocked the spells.

"Sad, isn't it? How you're basically confined to a few spells, simply because of your... _moral compass_?" one of the Death Eaters drawled lazily. Alexandra and Draco froze, knowing that voice.

"Well," Blaise said, pulling off his mask, quickly followed by Hermione. "Long time, no see, love."


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"_Hey!" a voice shouted from behind Harry, so he turned to look. It was Hermione and Neville, who were smiling broadly."Get into the same boat as us?" Hermione asked._

_Harry glanced at Draco and Blaise, who nodded and shrugged. They slowly made their way through the sea of students, finally reaching the other two and hopping into the boat. Vince and Greg had been lost somewhere in the crowd, but the three boys knew they were safe with their candy._

_A red-haired boy also emerged from the crowd, and desperately grabbed onto the side of the boat._

"_Could I sit with you?" he asked. Hermione shrugged, and Neville followed suit. "Why not?" Harry smiled._

_As they all got into the boat, Draco and Blaise were unusually quiet. "My name's Ron Weasley," the ginger smiled excitedly._

"_Hermione Granger," Hermione introduced herself. Nevile did likewise, but Draco and Blaise offered up their names slightly grudgingly._

"_Malfoy?" Ron asked, scrunching up his nose a little._

"_Problem?" Draco demanded._

_Ron shook his head, focusing on Harry._

"_Harry Potter," Harry smiled._

"_Woah," Ron gasped. "Can I see it? The scar?"_

"_Uh... sure," Harry said uncomfortably, pulling up his hair._

"_Wowww," Ron grinned. "Do you have super magical powers? How did you defeat You-Know-Who?"_

"_I... don't think so?" Harry answered uneasily. "I really don't know."_

"_But-" Ron began, but Hermione interrupted him._

"_You've got a bit of dirt there, on your nose," she pointed out. He rolled his eyes at her, scrubbing the spot she pointed at._

"_Hope I'm not in her house, wherever she's sorted into. Snotty, that bint," Ron whispered to Harry, but wasn't nearly quiet enough about it. Hermione's face dropped suddenly, and she turned away. A few seconds later, Harry could hear a soft sniffle._

"_She's actually rather intelligent, Weasley," Draco spoke up, staring straight at the ginger. "It'd be a pleasure to be in her house. And that _bint _was just being helpful, you ungrateful sod."_

_Hermione smiled at Draco, and Harry began to like Ron less and less._

"_Whatever, Malfoy," Ron shot back._

_As they approached the Great Hall, Harry couldn't get rid of Ron, who was exceedingly inquisitive about Harry's life. Any normal person would've gotten the hint with Harry's numerous 'dunno's and 'sure's. But Ronald Weasley persisted, and Harry grew increasingly irritated. As the Sorting began, all Harry could think of was "don't let me be his roommate."_

_First up was Vince and Greg, who were quickly sorted into Slytherin. Then Hermione, who sat on the stool for quite some time before finally being sorted into Gryffindor._

"_Really?" Draco voiced his surprise to Harry. "Would've thought she'd be a Ravenclaw. You heard how much she loves _Hogwarts A History."

_Harry shrugged, really not having a clue about how the Sorting worked._

_Next up was Neville, who was sorted into Gryffindor. Then, Draco, who was also sorted into Slytherin. Harry looked between the two houses as he was called up to the stand, unsure of where he really wanted to be put. As the hat was placed upon his head, he still hadn't made up his mind._

Well, well, _the hat said in Harry's mind, so that Harry jumped a little in surprise. _Harry Potter, is it? You're a tricky one. I see you're having issues deciding where you want to be, eh? You could be very, very good in Slytherin. Slytherin would help you onto greatness!

Greatness? _Harry thought back. _I don't want to be great. I just want to be normal. _A thought occurred to him. _Where were my parents from?

Gryffindor, _the hat stated. _You do have the spark of courage that Godric so admires.

_Harry looked between the houses, glancing at Hermione and Neville, or Draco, Vince and Greg. He didn't really like Vince and Greg, even though Draco was perfectly fine._

Gryffindor_, Harry stated firmly._

Certain? _the hat asked._

Yes. _Harry answered._

"_Gryffindor!' the hat announced, and he joined the Gryffindor table, shooting an apologetic glance in Draco's direction. Draco merely shrugged, and as Hermione and Neville congratulated him, Harry knew that the Sorting wouldn't make much of a difference._

_Harry cringed as Ron was sorted into Gryffindor, the ginger bounding straight up to Harry's spot at the table and shoving a few other first years to make room. Harry was sorry to see Blaise sorted into Slytherin, and was wondering if the Soritng Hat might have been right._

"_I can't believe she ended up in the same house as us," Ron was complaining. "Thankfully, if she's as intelligent as that Malfoy bloke was saying, at least she'll help us win the House Cup."_

"_House Cup?" Harry asked. Hermione leaned over and literally dumped a textbook load of knowledge on the competition, explaining how each house won points by good deeds or correct answers, or lost points by bad behavior. As the dinner concluded, Harry struggled to get away from Ron, but he was glued to Harry's hip like a leech._

"_What a swotty know-it-all!" Ron snickered as Hermione explained the moving staircases to Neville, who looked frighteningly overwhelmed._

"_Oi, would you lay off her?" Harry asked suddenly, fed up with Ron's insults. "It's not very nice, and she just likes to read, that's all. Is that so bad?"_

_Ron looked at Harry disbelievingly, and then suddenly, something dawned on him._

"_You fancy her, don't you?" Ron asked cheekily, nudging Harry._

"_Fan-fancy?" Harry spluttered. "I've only just met her! We're just friends."_

"_It's okay that you fancy her, I mean, I can see it. You're into her... well, not her hair, obviously, or those buck-tooth teeth. I guess her knowledge?" Ron barrelled on, ignoring Harry's denials and attempts to correct him._

"_I mean, if I came from a horrendously muggle family, I'd be excited to learn just as much as she's willing to say," Ron continued, all the way up to their room._

"_Ron, would you-"_

"_But honestly, I'd go for someone else," Ron prattled on. "I mean, I'm sure there are loads of prettier Ravenclaws that are just as smart, and certainly less annoying. I mean, I've heard that the new Ravenclaw seeker is bloody gorgeous. Certainly better suited for you, mate."_

"_RON!" Harry shouted, startling the other boys in the room. "Just, stop, all right? Give it a rest."_

"_Sorry," Ron apologized, not looking very sorry at all._

* * *

"You lost the right to call me that when you betrayed us," Alexandra stated coolly to Blaise, who looked mildly amused.

"Sure, love," he smirked.

"What are you two doing here?" Draco snarled. "Thought you were Voldy's protege, and too _important_ to participate in a little raid."

"Oh don't worry, Draco," Hermione smiled maliciously. "The Dark Lord's entrusted us with some... play time."

"Besides, I wanted to catch up with you, love," Blaise winked at Alexandra, who bristled in fury. "Are you two an item yet?"

"Fuck you, Blaise Xavier Zabini," Alexandra hissed.

"Ooh," Blaise mock-shivered. "You used my middle name. I'm in trouble now!" Hermione chuckled.

"So what, are you two an item now?" Draco mimicked Blaise's sing-song tone.

"Does it eat at you, Draco?" Blaise hissed, suddenly deadly. "Does it hurt that I ended up with your girl, and you're only friends with mine? That Hermione chose _me_ over _you_? I did a favor for you, you know. Daddy dearest wouldn't approve of his perfect pureblood son liking a mudblood. That would turn you into a blood traitor, wouldn't it? Oh wait, _you are _one!'

Alexandra had wasted no time in shooting a series of hexes at her ex whilst he was distracted, but Hermione easily blocked them all. She raised an eyebrow at Alexandra, who hadn't muttered a word.

"Nonverbal magic?" Hermione grinned. "I see I haven't been the only one studying up."

"Funny, that is," Alexandra mocked. "It seems you've forgotten our productive study sessions in the library."

"Must miss my presence, then?" Hermione taunted. "Did your a hundred and one percent slip down to a ninety nine, without me?"

"Of course I miss you," Alexandra smiled, continuing their duel. "Now I don't have the chance to slap you across the face like the bitch you are."

"Naughty, naughty," Hermione cackled. "When did you pick up swearing?"

"When a bitch and my boyfriend pranced over to the Mold Lord," Alexandra shot back.

"How dare you speak of our Lord with such blatant disrespect?" Blaise growled, shooting a nasty purple curse at her, which she dodged. Draco then engaged Blaise, to let each of them focus on one opponent, rather than two.

"Voldypoo? What part of his noseless being is there to respect?" Draco asked calmly, sneering.

Out of the corner of Alexandra's eye, she saw the opening of a door, and a closing. She nearly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Athalia and Seraphine were safe.

Blaise was about to embark on a long winded tirade when Harry, Paige, and Oliver came out from three different corners, wands ablaze. Hermione and Blaise were now surrounded, but they moved together, back to back. Perfectly synchronized, they swirled around, defending each other and attacking with such harmonized deadliness.

"Ooh," Hermione jeered, noticing how Harry and Paige stood unusually far apart in their attacks. "Paigey Waigey and Potty having relationship issues? Trouble in paradise?"

"Fuck you, Hermione Jean Granger," Paige hissed, sending another curse after her.

"Aww, they're using our middle names, Blaise," Hermione smirked. "We've been naughty, haven't we?"

"So naughty, that we might just leave, now," Blaise grinned. Hermione nodded, and the two began to apparate away in a cloud of dark smoke.

"I DON'T FUCKING THINK SO, YOU COWARDS!" Alexandra shrieked, shooting an Anti-Disapparation Jinx around them. It was likely that the jinx the Death Eaters had set up would allow Blaise and Hermione through, so Alexandra shot multiple layers, closing them in. Blaise and Hermione reappeared, a few feet from where they had began.

"Well done, well done," Blaise clapped slowly. "I like you fiery, you know. And by the way, it's just self-preservation."

"Too bad that the Dark Lord has taught us ways to get around such obstacles, no matter how impressive they might be," Hermione smirked.

"See you later, love. Nice catching up," Blaise winked. Suddenly, the two were gone, black smoke prodding carefully at the bubble, before finally breaking past and flying free.

"How did they...?" Harry trailed off, dumbfounded that they had broken through Alexandra's jinx.

"I FUCKING HATE THEM," Alexandra sobbed, finally breaking. Paige rushed to catch her in a hug as Alexandra nearly fell to the ground. "I hate him, I hate him, I hate him!"

"I know," Paige said softly, stroking her dark hair. Draco stood close by, a muscle working in his jaw.

How could Hermione, _his _Hermione, have turned into such a twisted, demented villain?

"Come on," Oliver said softly, but firmly. "Let's get Athalia's family to the safe house."

* * *

"All in all," Kingsley was saying, "the mission was successful." Several cheers erupted from around the table. Fred and George patted each other on the backs, and Oliver smiled tenderly at Paige, who blushed. Harry, seeing the interaction, fought back an enormous green monster.

Ginny nudged Draco, who was staring at his feet. "Hey," she murmured. "Why the long face? You just saved a few lives. At least you're bloody doing something. Unlike my pathetic brother, over there," she rolled her eyes at Ron, who was stubbornly sticking next to the fireplace, reading _The Prophet_.

Draco snorted. "Your lazy excuse of a brother doesn't mean shit to me," he snapped. Ginny shrugged, knowing she wouldn't get anywhere with him in this mood.

"Hopefully you and Alexandra snap out of it soon," were her parting words before she went to fend off her twin brothers' next prank.

Draco put his dishes away in the sink before Mrs. Weasley could fawn over how good-mannered he was. "Really, you're nothing like your father," she always told him. And he was sick of it. He wanted nothing to do with his damned father.

He spotted a figure out on the porch, and stepped outside to join her. Alexandra didn't acknowledge his presence, though she probably knew he was there. A few moments of silence passed between them, two friends staring up at the night sky, begging for answers.

"Why?" she finally whispered, closing her eyes. "Why did they have to betray us, Draco?"

He exhaled slowly. "Harry thinks that they were threatened somehow, and instead of doing the right thing, took the easy way-"

"I don't give a shite about what Harry thinks," Alexandra snapped, and then glanced at Draco apologetically. "Sorry," she muttered. "Nerves."

He nodded, accepting her apology.

"What do _you _think?" she asked.

"I don't know," he conceded. "On one hand, I could see the threat, but I know Hermione and Blaise would both be stronger than that. I can't just believe that one little threat would do them in. It's somehow larger than that."

"Or maybe they really are that fucking evil," Alexandra spat.

"I'd like to think better of them," Draco sighed.

"Since when did you become such an optimist?" Alexandra asked incredulously. He rolled his eyes at her.

"Come on, let's get inside before Harry murders Oliver for making googly eyes at Paige."

"Oh right," Alexandra sniffed. "Because in the middle of a war, that's all we need: drama."

"Speaking of drama," Paige smiled as they entered the safe house again. "I've spontaneously decided that Hogwarts needs better defence. We've got to start up the DA again."

"And this time, they'll have a martyr to fight for," Alexandra muttered beneath her breath.

"I suppose we could reconvene after this summer break. Everyone should have their old galleons, shouldn't they?" Harry asked. Draco hissed slightly, remembering how it had been _Hermione_ who had made the galleons.

Knowing exactly what Draco was thinking, Alexandra glared at Harry. "First of all, Harry, that's really inconsiderate to Draco, and frankly, all of us. Second, you don't think _Hermione _and _Blaise_ don't have their galleons, too? No, I'll start making something else up with the Protean charm. Paige, we'll have to hit the library once we get back." Paige nodded in agreement.

"Right, that settles it then," Harry said a little bashfully. "We'll need to recruit more members."

Paige eyed Harry a little warily. "I guess you and I can work on the Gryffindors, but that shouldn't be too hard."

"You could take the Snufflewuffs while you're at it," Draco added.

"Hufflepuffs are perfectly normal people as well," Alexandra poked him.

"Right. That's why they sparkle in the sunlight," Draco snorted.

Alexandra ignored him. "Draco and I can work on the Slytherins and Ravenclaws. After Paige and I figure out the Protean charm, and whatever object to use it on, we can bring everyone together in the Room of Requirement."

"Though this time," Harry added, looking carefully for a certain ginger. "We need to make it Ron-proof. The whole Inquisitorial Squad discovery was a _disaster_, just because he's a self-righteous prick."

"Agreed," Paige murmured, and then shot her eyes to meet Harry's, surprised that they had actually agreed on something for the first time in practically a year.

"So," Luna wandered dreamily up to the four. "Are we going to meet when the Hurfleshoops begin their matiing season? That would be ideal."

The other four sixth years just looked at each other, completely bewildered.

**Well, just because reviews make us all better writers, it would be greatly appreciated if you have any thoughts, comments, criticism, etcetera on how the story is developing - though we can't reveal too much, yet.**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_First year passed without much incident, though the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher somehow got himself killed in a troll incident. Too soon, Harry was shipped back to the Dursleys, with the small promise to write to his newfound friends._

_As usual, the Dursleys were as nasty as ever. When Hermione offered to let him stay for a few weeks before school started again, Harry found no peace in his room._

"_Staying with a _girlllllll_?" Dudley asked the day before Hermione and her family were meant to pick him up. After the run in with Dobby the house elf (Draco eventually wrote a letter apologizing for Dobby's nosiness), Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had been more than willing to get Harry out of the house - the fact that Hermione's parents were also muggle only helped calm their qualms._

"_A proper family," Uncle Vernon had said smugly. "Too bad their daughter's such a freak." Harry didn't miss the pinched look that crossed his aunt's face._

"_She your _girlllllfriend_?"_

"_No, Dudley. She's just a friend," Harry repeated for the hundredth time since the plans had been made._

"_Suuuuuure," Dudley returned his usual sarcastic reply. "Oh that's right, you could never get a girlllllfriend," he added thoughtfully. Harry rolled his eyes._

_The next day couldn't come to soon, and Harry leaped excitedly when he heard the doorbell ring._

_Soon, Dudley came stomping up the stairs, flinging the door open to Harry's room and snickering loudly._

"_I was wrong," he giggled, pointing down the staircase. "You can get a girlfriend, but a beaver looking ugly one at that."_

"_Shut up, Dudley," Harry sighed._

"_Did you just tell me to shut up?" Dudley asked, flabbergasted._

"_Yes," Harry replied, brushing past him and hauling his trunk down the stairs._

"_Muuuuuuuuuummmmm!" Dudley whined as Harry got to the front door._

"_It was a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. and Mr. Dursley," Hermione was saying politely, her two parents nodding behind her. "I hope you have a wonderful summer."_

"_Oh, we will," Uncle Vernon chuckled. Harry followed the Grangers out, just before hearing Dudley complain about Harry's rudeness to Aunt Petunia._

"_Hello, Harry," Dr. Granger, Hermione's father, greeted him as they put his trunk in the car. "Hermione's been telling us about your Aunt and Uncle."_

"_Dreadful people," Hermione's mother sighed, shaking her head as they got in the car._

"_Um, sorry, Dr. Granger," Harry said uncertainly, wincing as both of Hermione's parents turned to him. "How should I distinguish between you?"_

"_Oh just call me Ellen," Hermione's mum smiled._

"_Allen will do," Hermione's father answered._

_Harry raised an eyebrow at Hermione, who giggled. "How does an Allen and an Ellen come up with a name like mine?" she asked, and Harry confirmed that that was exactly what he was wondering._

"_I adore Shakespeare, and Allen studies Greek mythology in his spare time," Ellen explained. "It was the perfect match."_

"_Hermione is the name of Helen of Troy's only daughter," Allen explained._

"_And Hermione is a virtuous queen in Shakespeare's _A Winter's Tale," _Ellen continued._

"_So, here I am," Hermione cheered._

_Harry got on well with the Grangers, who were just as clueless about the Wizarding World as he was. By the time they visited Diagon Alley, Harry was invited to the Granger's home for every following summer, assuming the Dursleys allowed him._

"_Draco!" Hermione grinned as she spotted him outside Flourish and Botts._

"_Hullo Hermione," he smiled. "Harry. The old muggles treat you well?"_

"_Not at all," Harry grinned. _

"_Are you Dr. and... Dr. Granger?" Draco asked politely, offering his hand._

"_Allen and Ellen, if you please," Hermione's mum smiled, shaking the boy's hand. Draco was taken aback, shocked that they had offered up their first names._

"_They're... 'modern' parents," Hermione whispered in his ear. "Just smile and nod."_

"_It's nice to meet you," Draco smiled, though it was a little forced. Just behind the Grangers, he noticed his father stalking up, and quickly whispered to Hermione's parents._

"_My dad's a bit old fashioned, so I apologize if he's exceptionally rude to you," Draco winced as his father strode haughtily up behind him. Hermione's parents exchanged confused glances._

"_Draco!" Lucius Malfoy said sharply. "What did I tell you about wandering off-?" he stopped short as he caught sight of Harry and Hermione._

"These _are the friends you were speaking of?" Lucius asked sternly, narrowing his eyes. "I can't believe you'd associate with such filth," he looked down his nose at Hermione's obviously muggle family._

"_Hermione's not filth, she's exceptionally bright, as I told you," Draco shot back, earning himself a painful squeeze on the shoulder._

"_If that's your excuse for earning _second _in your class," Lucius sneered, holding an implied threat._

"_I'm sorry, I don't think I've introduced myself," Allen smiled warmly, offering his hand. "I'm Allen Granger, I'm Hermione's father."_

"_So. I. See." Lucius drawled slowly, ignoring the hand._

"_Come along, Draco. We're meeting respectable families this afternoon." Lucius Malfoy arrogantly brushed past Hermione and her parents, and Draco shot them all an apologetic glance._

"_Sorry," he mouthed, and then followed solemnly after his father._

"_How rude," Ellen said simply, shaking her head. "Poor boy. With a father like that," she shuddered._

_The rest of their shopping at Diagon Alley went without any mishaps, though they did run into the enormous Weasley family, where Hermione and Harry discovered that not all Weasleys were complete pricks. They rather enjoyed Fred and George, who excitedly demonstrated their vomiting prank on Ronald, and Ron's younger sister was rather quiet, staring wide-eyed at Harry. Soon enough, they were on the train, heading off to Hogwarts for their second year._

"_Sorry about my dad," Draco sighed heavily as he plopped into Harry, Hermione, and Neville's compartment. "I hope your parents don't hate me too much."_

"_No, they don't hate you," Hermione reassured him. "Though your father... quite a different story."_

"_Why _is _your father like that?" Harry asked._

"_You know how I explained the whole pureblood versus half blood versus mudblood... er... muggleborn belief?" Draco asked, to which Harry and Hermione nodded. "Well, he's really into that. In fact, I thought that that was how the world worked... until I saw you," he motioned to Hermione, who looked at him, surprised._

"_Me?" she asked, dumbfounded._

"_You're a muggleborn. No previous experience with magic - as your parents aren't magical, and yet, you managed to complete a spell I'd never heard of before we even reached Hogwarts. And you continued to beat me in every single blasted subject throughout the year - with no previous magical experience! How can a muggleborn be inferior if you're better than me in almost everything! Unless I'm incredibly stupid-"_

"_Which you're not," Harry pointed out. "Didn't your father say that you were second in our class?"_

_Draco sighed. "Yeah."_

"_And who was first?" Hermione asked curiously, though fluffed her hair a bit in anticipation._

"_You."_

"_How'd you even find that out?" Neville piped up from his corner._

"_My father... knows people. He's on the board of school governors," Draco explained. "Where's Blaise?"_

"_Dunno," Harry shrugged. "I've been hiding from Ron, so I didn't stay in the hallway for very long."_

"_I was meaning to introduce you to my roommate from last year," Hermione said softly. "She was rather shy at first, so she wouldn't let me introduce her to our friends."_

"_What?" Harry asked. "Why?"_

"_Well..." Hermione fidgeted in our seat. This time, however, Neville spoke up._

"_You three, plus Blaise, are almost a legend now," Neville said, with a hint of awe in his voice. "You're the only ones who have been friends despite the enormous rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor. Plus, you're Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived. You and Blaise, Draco, are the Slytherin princes. And Hermione's the best student in our year. You four are like a power quadruple."_

"_You're forgetting yourself, Neville," Hermione smiled kindly. "The boy who was brave enough to stand up to us when Draco insisted we sneak down to the kitchens. As Dumbledore said, last year. That does take courage."_

"_I agree," Draco said, but bitterly. "But I really don't think that that act alone deserves five hundred points, _just _to defeat Slytherin. Honestly, it's almost like, 'Harry went on a trouble-making adventure but Neville almost stopped them.' Gryffindor wins the House Cup!"_

"_You're just bitter," Hermione smiled. "Though I have to agree. That was a bit ridiculous. I'm going to find Paige, and I'll see if I can find Blaise."_

_A few moments after Hermione had left, the door slid back open. Hermione pranced in, grabbing a long, blond haired girl and dragging her to the seat next to Hermione. Blaise then stepped in, and behind him, was an Asian girl._

"_Mates, meet Alexandra," Blaise introduced them. "She's bloody brilliant. I just ran into Weasley making some ridiculously insensitive comment to this girl, and Alexandra hexed him within an inch of his life. She got away with it too, right under Percy Weasley's nose."_

"_Well done!" Draco smiled. "You're in Slytherin, aren't you?"_

"_Seriously, Draco, we've been potions partners on more than one occasion," she rolled her eyes. "Yes. I'm in Slytherin."_

"_And this is Paige," Hermione introduced the blonde girl, who smiled shyly._

_Their group complete, the seven chatted all the way to Hogwarts, though Hermione spent an unusual amount of time writing in a black leather book._

"_What's that you're writing?" Alexandra asked Hermione._

"_Oh, I love to write stories. Figured I'd keep a notebook - I found it lying in my room. Isn't that the oddest thing?" Hermione asked smiling._

_As a few months passed, Hermione became increasingly agitated, refusing to confide in Paige, which worried the girl. Suddenly, Hogwarts was in full blown terror, with muggleborns being petrified left and right._

"_You better watch out for yourself," Draco warned Hermione. "Something's going terribly, terribly wrong."_

_And yet, some things were going terribly right. Draco pushed Harry to try out for Quidditch, and amazingly, both of them landed seeker positions on their respective teams. Alexandra and Blaise both became chasers, (practically the entire Slytherin team had just graduated), and Paige became a chaser for Gryffindor. Neville and Hermione, more content to watch the games rather than play, cheered on both teams when the Slytherin and Gryffindor match began the year. Shortly after, all hell broke loose._

"_Harry!" Paige shouted as she raced down the stairs to the common room. "Hermione! Do you know where she is?"_

"_Hermione?" Harry asked. "Did she not go back to her room last night?"_

"_No," Paige was hyperventilating. "Not at all. You don't think she's been paralyzed, do you?"_

"_Merlin I hope not," Harry frowned._

_Harry, Neville, and Paige all kept a lookout for Hermione during breakfast, but again, she didn't appear. Alexandra, Blaise, and Draco met up with them at the end of breakfast. Without even muttering a word, they all raced up to the Hospital wing, bursting in to the dismay of Madame Pomfrey._

"_Blustering children!" Madame Pomfrey cursed. "I have patients in here, so you can't just burst in and bumble about!"_

"_Hermione, Hermione Granger?" Paige asked frantically. "Has she been petrified?"_

"_No, no," Madame Pomfrey assured them, ushering out of the wing. "I haven't seen any more petrified students since Penelope Clearwater. Go on to class, dears."_

"_Where is she?" Draco hissed._

"_Hold on," Alexandra paused as they passed the flooded girls bathroom. It appeared that Moaning Myrtle had been having some issues, lately. "Let me go talk to Myrtle and calm her down."_

_The other five student ambled down the corridor slowly, waiting for Alexandra to catch up. Suddenly, they heard her frantic running, splashing all down the hallway._

"_OI!" Alexandra cried, springing towards them. "I found Hermione's notebook!"_

"_What?" Paige asked. "She doesn't go anywhere without her notebook!"_

"_Give me that," Draco demanded, worry lines creasing his forehead. As he looked the notebook over, he suddenly dropped it, in fright._

"_Oh no," he muttered. "I should've... I could've... Why didn't I recognize... Merlin's saggy pants!"_

"_Draco?" Blaise asked._

"_Ow," Harry cursed, rubbing his scar. "That hurts. It's not done that for a while."_

"_That's... that's..." Draco stumbled over his words. "That's You-Know-Who's diary!"_

_Neville squeaked in fright, backing away from the book._

"_How on Earth did Hermione get ahold of that?" Paige asked, dumbfounded._

_Draco thought a moment, his eyebrows drawn together. Suddenly, he came to a realization, and swore._

"_My father."_

_Alexandra picked up the diary, and everyone backed up a step. "I don't think touching it will hurt, I mean, Hermione touched it for a while, and Draco and I just did without any harm. I'm just... going to take a look. And see what she wrote." Alexandra opened the notebook. Frowning, she flipped page after page, and then dropped the book in fright._

"_Alexandra!" Neville asked worriedly. "What was in it?"_

"_Nothing," she whispered. "Nothing!"_

"_There's a piece of paper, there," Paige pointed to a sopping note that had slipped out of the book._

_Alexandra picked it up, and read it off, confused. "The Chamber of Secrets."_

_Draco's eyes widened. "Harry, you and I are going down to Hagrid's, now," he hissed. "Hagrid was the last person to open up that Chamber. He's got to know something."_

"_We'll research the Chamber of Secrets, and see what we can find," Alexandra nodded to Paige, Blaise, and Neville, who all began to head off in the library._

"_I've got a feeling that Hermione's in that Chamber," Draco whispered worriedly to Harry, who prayed it could not be true._

* * *

"DA meeting tonight, seven PM, got it?" Alexandra asked Paige, who nodded agreeably. "Good, I've got some new Slytherin recruits. Not many, but enough to start."

"Perfect," Paige replied, smiling. "Plenty of younger Gryffindors. Have you talked to the Ravenclaws?"

"Again, many of them just won't give up their study time. But I've gotten a few more."

"Hufflepuffs honestly don't understand anything," Paige sighed.

"Hufflepuffs are people, too!" Alexandra giggled. "Gotta run. I'm trying to convince Pansy, so I'll need all of the time I can get."

Paige snorted. "Good luck with Pansy. Honestly, I would prefer it if the bitch-"

"She's a good friend of Draco and Blai-" Alexandra stopped suddenly, biting down on her lip.

"Alex-" Paige began.

Alexandra waved her off. "I'm fine, I'm fine. I'll see you at the DA meeting."

A couple hours later, with quite a lot of manipulations and persuasive speeches, Alexandra managed to drag Tracey and a few younger Slytherins and Ravenclaws to the DA meeting. Seeing Paige, Alexandra left her friends and joined her at the front.

"Attention!" Paige shouted, but the clamoring students didn't hear her.

"OI! SHUT IT!" Alexandra shouted, using her infamous inside-voice. The room instantly quieted.

One of the boys in the back, a tall dark-haired sixth year named Caine, stood up and gave an arrogant sneer. "You're telling me this group is being run by a bunch of _girls?_" he drawled.

Paige raised one eyebrow. "Do you have a problem with that?"

Caine gave a dramatic shrug. "Oh, I just thought it was a well-known fact that boys are better than girls at fighting."

"Oh, is that what you think?" Paige asked coolly, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

Caine, gaining confidence now, widened his sneer. "No offense, sweetheart, but I think you'd better let one of the men run this meeting."

Paige exchanged a look with Alexandra. She just gave a simple nod.

Paige turned her head back towards Caine and gave a small sigh. "I can't say I will regret doing this."

By the time Caine's head hit the back wall of the Room of Requirement with an audible crack, Paige's wand was out and pointed straight at his heart. She strode across the room casually and stopped when she was halfway to the back of the wall where Caine was eagle spread, held suspended by the bounds of the wordless curse. Her wand lowered as Paige flicked her hand and he slid to the floor on his knees. The curse had knocked the breath out of him when he hit the wall, and he struggled to his feet, drawing his wand and pointing it at her, trying to get a spell out to fight back.

He managed a "_Stupefy_!"

She deflected the spell easily with a flick of her wand and cast a nonverbal body-binding spell. "Pathetic."

Waving her wand, she sent Caine spinning through the air and landing a few feet back on his hands and knees. He quickly scrambled to get up, stumbling as he pointed his wand at her.

Alexandra snorted. Paige shook her head slowly. "It's almost sad watching you struggle."

She raised her wand and flicked it nonchalantly. Caine's wand flew out of his hand and struck the wall, rolling to the floor.

She smirked. "_Almost._"

She took a deep breath, mostly for the dramatic effect, and once again lifted Caine off his feet and sent him hurtling towards the flaming basin in the corner of the room. He let out a terrified scream, which sounded surprisingly like a little girl's. Just as his pants came inches from the flame, he stopped moving, suspended in mid-air above the fire.

"LET ME GO!" he shouted, "I want to be let down!"

A lazy, sarcastic smile spread across Paige's face. "Yeah, and people in hell want some nice, cold butterbeer."

Then she dropped Caine. He barely had time to scream before Paige yelled, "_Evanesco!_" and the flames vanished, Caine landing on his arse on the brass bottom of the basin.

Paige strolled over to the basin, twirling her wand in her fingertips. She approached the cowering Caine and stuck her wand in her back pocket. With a flick of her left wrist Caine was up and out of the basin, suspended in midair, and Paige grabbed the collar of his shirt in her right hand, letting him fall on his feet.

"Oh." Paige swept Caine's leg out from under him, causing him to fall flat on his back to the ground. She crouched down next to him. "If you ever call me sweetheart again, I will not hesitate to kick your arse. Because this little stunt?" she asked, motioning to the damage she'd caused with a wave of her hand, "is not _nearly_ all I can do."

She stood up and strode to the front of the room, taking her place next to Alexandra. The rest of the DA watched her awed silence.

"So. Anyone have any other questions?" she asked, smiling.

**I apologize for the Hermione/Harry confusion. Now that fanfiction allows you to post up four characters for a story, I had chosen Harry, Hermione, Draco, and Blaise. Unfortunately, on browsing, however, it only showed Harry and Hermione. So, it's been switched to Dramione, where it belongs. Yes, the DA section here is exactly the same as the section in TIOB, but souloflead is planning on deleting that scene in her rewrite, so it is officially part of our story! Please review! Sorry if I offended anyone with the review quota last chapter - I'd just seen other authors do it and thought we should give it a shot. It's been taken down, thanks for the feedback, though.**


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_Harry and Draco met Paige, Alexandra, Neville, and Blaise in the library, where they explained their frightening experience with Hagrid's spiders._

"_It all makes sense!" Alexandra exclaimed, pulling open a book that detailed basilisks and how spiders feared them._

"_If it's a basilisk in that chamber..." Draco trailed off worriedly. "How on Earth did it come slithering around the school to petrify everyone? Why didn't the students die?"_

"_It's here," Paige explained, underlining a portion of the text with her finger. "If the students only saw reflections of the snake, they'll just be petrified, rather than killed. Justin Finch-Fletchey probably saw it through the ghost, Colin Creevey through his camera, and Penelope Clearwater through her mirror."_

"_As for how it travels through the school... we have no bloody idea," Blaise shrugged._

"_Hold on," Alexandra paused, looking closely at Draco and Harry. "Didn't you mention that a student died the last time the Chamber was opened?"_

"_Yes," Harry affirmed. "By the way, Draco, forgot to ask. How _did _you know that Hagrid was the last person to have opened it? Which, apparently, he didn't."_

"_My father," Draco gritted out. "He was at the school when it happened."_

_Alexandra and Paige looked at each other, thinking the same thing._

"_Is it just me, or does it seem like too much of a coincidence that the journal was found there, in the bathroom, which is consistently haunted by Moaning Myrtle?" Paige asked, and Alexandra nodded._

"_She must have been the student who died - she's the only ghost who wears Hogwarts robes," Alexandra deduced._

_Neville blanched, looking like he needed to throw up, and ran out of the library, probably to the bathroom._

"_C'mon," Harry said determinedly. "Let's go ask her."_

_Soon enough, Hogwarts was being shut down, and the five students slid down the pipe after their rather useless teacher, Professor Lockhart, who screamed after they pushed him._

"_PIPES!" Alexandra shouted suddenly, so that all turned to look at her. "Of course, the snake travelled through the pipes!"_

_Lockhart, being the intelligent man he was, tried to take advantage of the momentary distraction, uttering an Obliviate charm, only to be thrown back by Paige's impressive shield. Rocks crashed down all over them, so that Harry was separated from the rest of his friends and his stupid Professor._

"_We shouldn't have taken him," Draco cursed, brushing rubble off of his robes. "Now look at him, the Obliviate charm rebounded towards himself! Completely vacant, with the same amount of intelligence he had before."_

"_I'll go on," Harry murmured. "Find a way to clear all the rubble, if Hermione and I come back."_

"_Harry!" Paige yelled, and then suddenly quieted. "You _will _come back. I know it."_

"_Before you go," Alexandra managed to fit the black journal through a crevice between the rocks. "I don't know if that's useful, if you can use it as a bargaining chip or anything, but it might come in handy. Destroy it, if you can."_

_Harry took the journal. "Thanks."_

_The wait was horrible. Not only were they bored, but all were frightened, having seen the molten skin of the giant snake. Blaise was desperately trying to calm Alexandra down, without much success. Paige was incredibly quiet, furiously working at arranging the rocks with her magic so that there would be a way for Harry and Hermione to work their way back here. Draco, however, was absolutely inconsolable._

"_Draco, mate," Blaise tried, after being unsuccessful with Alexandra. "It's not like you knew your father gave her that journal."_

"_I should have bloody recognized it!" he shouted angrily. "I'd seen it before, and I knew my father was altogether too happy after we met Hermione's parents!"_

"_Don't be so hard on yourself," Lockhart said dreamily as he slowly came to. "Don't worry. Be happy!"_

"_Someone shut him up, or so help me, I'll kill him," Draco snapped, so that Blaise sent a _Silencio _towards his professor._

_It seemed like hours before they had managed to make a reasonable space through the pile of rocks, and just then, Harry and Hermione limped around the corner of one of the pipes, pale and exhausted. In Harry's hand was the black journal, a hole stabbed right through it, the Sorting hat, and a massive sword. Fawkes flew behind them, hovering almost protectively just above the pair._

"_Hermione! Harry!" Paige shouted, running to attack the two in a tight hug._

"_Merlin, you guys are okay," Alexandra breathed, relieved. Blaise patted her on the back, waiting for their turns to greet the two second years._

"_Let's get back," Harry smiled tiredly, grabbing onto Fawkes' tail feathers._

_The rest of second year passed without many mishaps, though Draco was fairly incensed when Harry caught the snitch miraculously every game. Dumbledore, again, hurried to find another DADA teacher, as the professors seemed to drop out within the first few months. Needless to say, the all of the DADA classes learned a considerably more amount than they would have under Lockhart's tutelage._

_Harry reluctantly returned to the Dursleys, but now with two additional friends to write to. Ron invited him over the summer, and though he didn't have any particular desire to spend additional time with Ron, he couldn't deny the chance to see some of Fred and George's pranks. Besides, it was time better spent, as opposed to living with the Dursleys as normal. Ron even had the audacity to invite Hermione, with a cheeky wink drawn onto the parchment. In Harry's correspondence with Hermione, they both decided they might as well, since Hermione's parents were busy this summer with her grandparents' health problems. _

_Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were incredibly excited that Harry would leave before Aunt Marge's arrival, so that he couldn't cause any trouble. Harry rolled his eyes at their excitement. What was he going to do? Blow her up?_

_So, at the end of the summer, he was glad to see his other friends, his head aching from the enormous amount of bickering that had exploded between Ron and Hermione._

"_Draco, Blaise," Harry greeted as he entered the train compartment. "Who's that in the corner?" Harry looked over at the scraggly man, who was passed out in a rather uncomfortable position._

"_No clue," Draco shrugged. "Not living on a comfortable salary, just judging on his appearance. He was just here, and Blaise and I came late today, so this was the last compartment not occupied by utter nincompoops. I hope you don't mind. We _could _go find elsewhere, but he's not bothering us... and it appears we're not bothering him."_

_Harry shrugged. "This compartment's fine. I'm so glad to see you. My ears have been ripped off all summer, listening to Hermione and Ron go back and forth at each other. It's been worse, now that Hermione's got a cat."_

"_Weasley's overprotective of his stupid rat," Blaise rolled his eyes. "Honestly, what good is the dumb animal? It's so old, it ought to be put out of its misery."_

"_No idea why he keeps it around." Harry looked around the compartment. "Seen Neville or the girls?"_

"_Neville's been hanging out with Ginny and Loony, more recently," Draco mentioned. "I saw them sitting together when I was looking for compartments. He just waved to me, and I wouldn't dare sit in the same area as that loonybin."_

"_On first name basis with Weasley's sister?" Blaise asked incredulously. "When did that happen?"_

"_Hermione and Paige," Harry answered. "They kind of took Ginny and Luna under their wings - Ginny, the poor girl, was completely unsure of herself last year. Though I have to agree... Luna's rather odd."_

_The compartment door slid open, and in came Alexandra and Paige, who were dragging Hermione and her cat from a very loud fighting match. Draco and Blaise both winced at Hermione's shrill voice, though Harry seemed to be desensitized to it._

"_Sit down!" Alexandra commanded, pushing Hermione into her seat. "The Weasel's not worth it, you _know _it! Why do you keep engaging him?"_

"_Ugh!" Hermione threw her hands up in the air. "He's constantly pestering me, and I'm sick of it. 'Hermione, don't you dare let your mangy beast anywhere near poor little Scabbers. He's defenceless, against that ball of murder. Hermione bloody Granger, why on Earth did you open up the Chamber of Secrets last year? How could you attack all of those innocent people? It's not like you're a pureblood or anything. Hermione Hermione Hermione why do you have to be such a swotty know-it-all!?' UGH!" Hermione mimicked Ron's squeaky voice, angrily wanting to punch something._

"_Violence isn't the answer, at least with Ron," Paige dropped in her advice, shaking her head. "Can you believe this girl? She actually _slapped _Ronald across the face!"_

_Harry, Draco, and Blaise stared at Hermione, wide-eyed._

"_What?" she asked irritably. "It's not like I'm always the perfect little goody two shoes."_

"_Uh, yeah, you are," Draco laughed. "I wish I could've seen Weaselbee's face when you slapped him. That would have been priceless."_

"_Do not encourage her!" Paige said sharply, glaring at him._

_The train suddenly stopped, the compartment going dark. And as the doors frosted over, Harry heard his mother scream, while the rest of his friends met their newest DADA teacher._

* * *

"_I need your advice, Draco and Harry," Blaise began anxiously. "For Hogsmeade... do you think I should ask someone?"_

_Draco quirked an eyebrow. "And who might this someone be?"_

"_Erm..." Blaise paused, struggling with himself. "Alexandra," he choked out._

"_Do you fancy her?" Harry asked, though a bit preoccupied with the latest attacks from Sirius Black._

"_Well... yeah. I guess so," Blaise admitted softly._

"_About time," Draco snorted. "Thought you'd never own up to it."_

"_Is it that obvious?" Blaise asked fearfully._

"_To us it is," Harry replied, still mulling over _The Daily Prophet. "_But we do know you best. Relax, it's only Alexandra."_

"_I don't want to ruin our friendship, or anything. I'd hate for it to be awkward," Blaise added, fiddling with his quill._

"_Just do it mate. Worst case, it'll be awkward for a few days, but it will get back to normal, after that," Draco scoffed._

"_But-"_

"_Man up, all right?" Harry demanded, irritated. "We have more important things to be worried about."_

"_Like what?" Blaise asked, rolling his eyes._

"_Like how Sirius Murderin' Black is out to kill me!" Harry shouted, slamming his hand on the table. Several other students turned to look at him, and he flushed angrily. "What? Don't you all have a Transfiguration essay to write?"_

_Blaise got up, fed up of Harry's attitude. "Okay, mate, I get it. You're stressed, there's a murderer out on the loose, and it's scaring the hell out of us. But the world doesn't revolve around you, okay?" he snapped._

"_No, you _don't _get it!" Harry retorted. "You're not the one who bloody survived Voldemort, and suddenly someone's out to murder you every single year of your life!"_

_Blaise's eyes hardened._

"_You. Know. Nothing," he spat, and walked away from the table, carrying his books with him._

"_What's he got to complain about?" Harry huffed. Draco narrowed his eyes._

"_Lots, Harry, trust me. Lots," Draco stated, before getting up, too._

_Out of spite, Blaise refused to ask Alexandra to Hogsmeade, but sulked for such a length that Harry finally apologized._

"_Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Harry asked exasperatedly. "I lashed out, and that wasn't okay. But you shouldn't let me get in the way of your happiness, all right?" Blaise still refused to look at Harry._

_But Draco had had enough of this drama. They weren't bloody girls, for Merlin's sake._

"_Just punch him, all right? Punch each other, settle it like a bunch of proper blokes! Until you stop sulking and sobbing like a bunch of girls, count me out!" Draco hissed, before seeking out Neville, of all people._

_Draco hadn't walked five meters when Blaise finally punched Harry on the shoulder mildly, and then grinned. "Now, are we done here? I have a girl to ask out."_

* * *

Daphne Greengrass was not a popular girl. Quiet and self-contained, she easily faded into the shadows and kept her nose in a book, certainly far away from anyone else's business. Her younger sister, Astoria, however, was the exact opposite.

So when Daphne entered the common room to find her sister arguing loudly with a mildly hysterical Alexandra, it wasn't exactly surprising. The only surprising thing, in this whole situation, was that Alexandra, normally levelheaded with a library of sharp comebacks, was actually stricken by whatever the younger Greengrass girl had said. Plus, as nosy as Astoria was, Astoria typically knew not to mess with the asian girl. But somehow, this time, the rules didn't apply.

Daphne sighed. Since Astoria _was_ her sister, she supposed that it automatically made this argument her business. Although Daphne was increasingly disinclined to be involved in any way, shape, or form.

"You're telling me, that after your fucking _boyfriend_ murdered our headmaster, that _you're _recruiting for an _army _under Dumbledore's _name_?" Astoria asked disbelievingly. "Obviously this is some sort of revenge, or _repentance_," Astoria hissed. "What, weren't you good enough in bed for your darling beau to take you along to the Dark Lord's service? Working against our beliefs, now, are you? Just because he _dumped _you?"

"This has nothing to do with Blaise!" Alexandra snapped back. "I'm talking about basic _self-defence_, all right? We are all going to be in situations where we'll need a means to protect ourselves! Dumbledore's Army is just a name, for Merlin's sake. The point is, learn how to _keep yourselves alive_, isn't that the goal? It doesn't matter which side wins, so long as you're _alive_ and with your loved ones! Learn how to protect yourself and others, why don't you?"

"Oh yeah, loved ones like your darling Blaise?" Astoria retorted. "You _so_ put out, and he _so_ dumped you after he got what he wanted. Or maybe it's the opposite, hmm? You didn't catch him, because you're a little prude."

"Spending a little too much time with your _virtuous_ Gryffindors," Pansy added from another side of the common room, grinning evilly.

"It's called self-preservation," Alexandra replied coolly. "And I though all Slytherins list that as their first priority."

"You're just doing this to get back at Blaise, since he left you for the Mudblood. It stings, doesn't it? That he ditched you and left you at Hogwarts, in this utter dump, while he gallivanted off with the Mudblood by his side and has come into power, _real _power, at the side of the Dark Lord," Astoria taunted. "No, my fellow Slytherins. She's the most Slytherin of us all, but she's a weak, vengeful little bitch."

"I believe," Draco Malfoy stated from behind Daphne. "That that would be you."

"Why you," Astoria sputtered.

"See, Astoria seems to forget a very critical, or shall I say, hypocritical, point," Draco drawled slowly to his classmates. "Astoria, here, continuously threw herself at Blaise, countless time over the past couple of years. And yet, every single time, she was rebuffed. Why? Because he had a girlfriend, and they were perfectly happy together. Now, what Blaise did unfortunately cost him his relationship with Alexandra, but that _does not mean_ that she did anything wrong. Alongside the Dark Lord, I doubt that Blaise has any time for romance, as we all might suspect. So, it appears then," he said slowly, turning to face Astoria, who was now trembling with anxiety and rage, "that _you_ are the one trying to get back at Alexandra, since Blaise never looked at you when he was enamoured with her. It stings, doesn't it? That he ditched you and left you all alone, while he gallivanted off with Alexandra by his side?" Draco asked maliciously, echoing her previous words.

Astoria was beyond words, and so, sent a hex flying towards Draco, that Alexandra easily deflected with a flick of the wrist.

"Oh bitch, you did not just attack one of my friends," Alexandra said heatedly, rounding on Astoria.

"Only friends?" Astoria taunted. "I'm sure that after both of your crushes deserted you, you found much more than friendship with each other."

"Oh, if only I had fallen in love with that man over there," Alexandra sighed wistfully, sending a series of hexes in fast succession towards Astoria, who barely dodged each one. "Would've been much easier, and smoother. You and Blaise should've gotten together. You deserve each other," Alexandra hissed.

The Slytherin common room watched in awe as the two girls duelled, bright flashes of light shooting back and forth faster than one could blink. Alexandra had to admit, Astoria was a formidable dueller.

Astoria successfully caught Alexandra with an _Expelliarmus_, and the students all groaned, believing that the duel was over. As Daphne turned away, she was surprised to see Draco smirking, as if it wasn't over yet. And as soon as Astoria was pinned to the wall, silenced, and bound with ropes that gave her boils on every body part they touched, the entire Slytherin House realized that Alexandra knew both nonverbal _and_ wandless magic.

"Thanks for the practice," Alexandra smiled mock sweetly. "I needed to get back into shape."

Draco grinned as Alexandra turned to the rest of the students gaping on the sidelines. "So," she smiled innocently. "Who wants to learn that from Dumbledore's Army?"

**AN: Please review! Sorry we haven't updated in a while!**


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_Third year included a rat, a dog, a hippogriff, and a werewolf, but fourth year was where the real excitement began. The Yule Ball was quickly approaching, and all the students in fourth year and above were buzzing with gossip and crushes. Draco, Harry, and Blaise were all huddled together under a tree, awkwardly asking each other how to go about asking their respective crushes._

"_Blaise," Draco snapped. "You're already dating Alexandra. There's nothing to be worried about, seriously."_

"_But-" Blaise protested._

"_Draco's right, mate," Harry sighed. "At least _you _know the person you want to ask will say yes."_

"_Who, Paige?" Blaise asked. _

_Harry looked at him in surprise, "how did you know I fancied-"_

"_Mate, a blind rat could tell that you fancied her." Draco said sarcastically. _

_Harry's cheeks reddened. "Does everyone really know I have a huge crush on her?"_

"_Absolutely everyone." Draco affirmed. "Well, except for Paige." _

_Harry sighed. "Well, than how do I know she will say yes?" He nervously smoothed down his black hair. "I've only fancied her since-"_

"_Second year." Blaise interrupted. _

"_Seriously, do you two know every detail about my love life?" Harry asked, annoyed. _

"_Yeah, mate, and she's sitting right over there." Draco pointed to where Paige was perched on a ledge, leaning on a stone pillar, reading what looked like the Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook. _

_Blaise gave Harry a shove towards her direction. "Go ask her!" _

"_Fine." Harry said, "but only if you go and ask Alexandra." _

_Blaise grinned. "Go on, mate." _

_Harry adjusted his robe and headed over to the wall where Paige was sitting, absorbed in the textbook, his heartbeat hammering in his ears. _

"_H-hey, Paige." Harry started nervously when he approached her._

_She looked up and flashed him a brilliant smile. "Hey, Harry. What's up?"_

_His heart skipped a beat as he looked at the way her long blonde hair framed her face, one strand tucked neatly behind her ear. Her big green eyes bored into his with a questioning glimmer. _

_He exhaled. "I was just wondering... would you like to go to the Yule Ball with me?"_

_She blinked in surprise. "Oh," she said. Then she closed her textbook and stood up. "I'd love to." Her smile widened. _

_A naive grin spread on Harry's face as he felt giddy relief flood through his system. _She said yes! "_Fantastic!" _

"_I'm surprised you asked me." She stated. "Being a Triwizard Champion, I'm sure you get a lot of attention..."_

_Harry laughed. "You'd be surprised. And none of them even compare to you." _

_Paige blushed and looked down shyly. "Really?" _

"_Well, I've only had a crush on you since Hermione introduced us second year, which, according to Draco and Blaise, is the most obvious thing in the world." _

_Now it was Paige's turn to laugh. "Well, their teasing aside, I'm glad you asked me." The smile that spread on her cheeks was a genuine one. _

_Harry couldn't remember a moment when he was this happy. He embraced her and made his way back over to where Blaise and Draco were snickering underneath a tree. _

"_Oh, stop it!" Harry smacked Draco's shoulder. "At least now I have a date!"_

"_Your turn, Zabini," Draco pushed Zabini in Alexandra's direction, where she was talking with Neville about a particularly hard Herbology problem._

"_Hey, 'Lex," Blaise smiled shyly as he approached his girlfriend. "Neville."_

"_Blaise," Neville nodded. "I'll leave you two alone."_

"_Good luck, mate," Neville whispered as he passed by Blaise. "At least you don't fancy Luna. She didn't give me a straight answer, but I assumed she meant yes. Something about the nargles and hufflerwumps aligning properly." Blaise swallowed nervously._

"_Um, 'Lex?"_

"_Yes?" she asked, raising an eyebrow and smiling, as if she knew where this was going._

"_WouldyoumindcomingtotheYuleBallwithme?" Blaise asked in a rush. Alexandra's eyebrows pulled together, trying to decipher the noise that had issued itself from Blaise's mouth._

"_Um, sorry, say that again?"_

"_Um. Would you mind... coming to the Yule Ball... with me?" Blaise asked, pausing in the middle to take in a breath._

"_Of course," she smiled, hugging him tightly. "No need to be nervous, Blaise. Though you really shouldn't have asked me this late - what if I had been asked by someone else? Procrastinator."_

"_Can't really help that," he grinned into her jacket._

"_I'd love to stay and chat, but I really need help on that Herbology problem. I've got to find Neville again," she said distractedly looking around the courtyard. "Bye!" she kissed Blaise on the cheek, before heading off in Neville's direction._

_Blaise and Harry high-fived, grinning at each other._

"_Good job, mates," Draco smiled._

"_Now, don't think we forgot about you," Blaise smirked._

"_Yeah, why don't we head on over to the library? I'm sure Hermione'll be in there," Harry grinned mischievously._

"_Um, how about no?" Draco asked nervously._

"_Hold on, you just pressured both of us in asking our dates, and now you don't have the balls to ask yours?" Blaise asked cheekily._

"_Hermione's your best friend, mate. She won't say no," Harry assured Draco, and the two boys dragged the unwilling Malfoy to the library._

"_That's what you think," Draco muttered under his breath._

_They found Hermione in her usual place, seated at a quiet table obscured by the towering bookshelves. She had several books open on the desk, and a few suspended in midair above her. _

_Blaise and Harry shoved Draco in her direction. "Go on, mate!" Blaise encouraged._

"_But-!" Draco protested, turning to face them, but the two had already gone. "Damn Potter and Zabini," he cursed under his breath. Slowly, Draco approached Hermione's desk._

_Sensing his presence, she looked up, about to tell him off for disrupting her study time, but paused when she saw him, her mouth agape._

"_Oh- Draco! Didn't think it was you," she sighed, relaxing._

"_Hey," he mumbled._

"_Did you need something?" she asked, looking at him weirdly._

"_Well no. I mean yes. I mean- I've been meaning to ask you something," Draco stumbled over his words, cursing his awkwardness._

"_Yes?" Hermione asked._

"_Um, did you want to... gototheYuleBallwithme?" Draco exhaled the last phrase in one breath, making it completely indistinguishable. _

"_Say that again?" Hermione asked._

"_Go to the Yule Ball with me?" he asked, calmer._

"_Oh, Draco!" Hermione sighedd. "I'd love to, I really would-"_

_Draco's heart soared._

"_But I'm afraid I've already been asked," Hermione continued._

_Draco's heart sunk._

"_And I already accepted," she sighed. "If you'd have asked earlier, I would've said no to this bloke."_

_Draco's heart sunk even further._

"_Who, uh, who asked you?" Draco asked dejectedly. _

"_Viktor Krum." Hermione said. _

"_KRUM?" Draco asked incredulously. "When did you even meet the bloke?"_

"_Here, in the library," Hermione sighed, annoyed. "He's a bit weird, watching me while I study. He's nice enough, though, once I talked to him." _

"_Oh, well, that's fantastic, I suppose," Draco said sadly. "Um... bye."_

"_Wait-" Hermione called as he turned away, grabbing his arm._

"_I really would have preferred to go with you, you know?" she said nervously as he raised an eyebrow. "I um... yeah. I'll see you around?"_

"_Of course," he smiled softly, and exited the library. _

_On the night of the Yule Ball, Harry, Draco, and Blaise stood at the bottom of the staircase leading to the Great Hall, nervously adjusting their dress robes, waiting for their dates to arrive. _

"_What is taking them so long?" Draco grumbled, smoothing back his hair for the umpteenth time. _

"_They're girls, mate." Blaise explained. "They take a while." _

_Draco frowned. "I don't see why they have to take forever putting on bloody-"_

_He was interrupted by a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see Ginny Weasley standing before him in an emerald green dress. _

"_Ready to go?" She asked. _

_Before Draco could respond, Ron's voice pierced the air, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING BRINGING MY SISTER AS YOUR DATE?!"_

"_Well, I asked her," Draco replied coolly. "And she agreed. Obviously."_

"_GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF OF MY SISTER!" Ron raged, wrenching his arm from Lavender's grasp, stomping to face Draco._

"_Ron!" Ginny shouted. Lavender simpered, in the corner. "Do you have to ruin everything for me? For Merlin's sake, leave me alone! It's none of your business."_

"_IT IS BLOODY TOO MY BUSINESS!" Ron shouted, spitting in Draco's face. "YOU TURN AROUND AND GO BACK TO THE COMMON ROOM!" Ron demanded, spinning on Ginny. Her eyes lit up in anger._

"Excuse _me?" she demanded, poking her brother in the ribs. _

"_You heard me," Ron said angrily, his face contorting into all manners of shapes._

"_I don't think so," Ginny spat. "I have no tolerance for your immature behaviour. For once, will you actually maintain a hold on yourself? For Merlin's sake, we're representing Hogwarts."_

"_Immature?" Ron spluttered. "_Immature?"

"_Certainly, Weasley," Draco scoffed. "You're obviously not even mature enough to recognize your atrocious actions. Have some decorum in front of my date, would you?" Draco asked airly, offering his arm to Ginny. She took it, and they walked off to speak with Neville and Luna._

"_Whoa, mate." Blaise said, nudging Harry and pointing towards the top of the staircase. _

"_Wha-" he was cut off mid-sentence. _

_Paige was making her way down the stairs. Her dress flowed around her as she moved, a white chiffon skirt with a beautiful long sleeved lace bodice with sheer sleeves. Her golden hair was put up neatly in an elegant bun that rested at the nape of her neck. She smiled shyly when she approached Harry, who was at a loss for words. _

"_You, uh, you look... " He managed, internally cursing himself for being such an idiot._

"_Thanks." She said, giving him a sympathetic smile. "You too."_

_They then turned as they heard a rather strangled gasp coming from Blaise, who had just caught sight of Alexandra. As she descended the steps, Blaise took in her royal blue ballgown, an ornate jeweled belt attached at the empire waist._

"_Hey," Alexandra smiled up at her boyfriend._

"_Gorgeous," Blaise whispered, smiling. She laughed, her silver droplet earrings catching the candlelight._

"_Looking pretty sharp yourself," she complimented._

"_Alexandra, twirl for me!" Paige demanded._

"_Only if you go first," Alexandra smiled._

_Paige complied, spinning so that her skirt flared out beautifully, giving her an angelic look. "Your turn," Paige smiled._

"_Fine," Alexandra complied, twirling slowly to display the laced back and beautiful ruching. Suddenly, McGonagall burst into the foyer._

"_Potter," McGonagall asked breathlessly, panicking slightly. "Are you ready to dance?"_

"_What?" Harry asked, bewildered._

"_Didn't I tell you that all the Champions open up the ball with the first dance?" she asked, annoyed._

"_No..."_

"_Well, I must have. Hurry up, you and Ms. Morgan, get out there!"_

_Harry looked apologetically at his date, pulling her to the front of the line, where they stood alongside Victor Krum and his date, Hermione._

"_Is, is that Hermione?" Ginny asked, in awe of the brunette's gorgeous periwinkle ensemble. Draco turned, and his breath caught in his throat._

"_Wow," he choked._

"_She's gorgeous," Ginny complemented. "But of course you know that."_

"_For Merlin's sake, does _everyone _know?" Draco asked angrily._

_Ginny snorted. "Everyone but her."_

_Up at the front of the line, all the champions had lined up; Hermione and Viktor Krum were second, followed Fleur Delacour and Roger Davies. Cho Chang and Cedric Diggory brought up the rear. _

_Harry glanced nervously at Paige as McGonagall gave the signal to open the Great Hall doors. Reaching down, he intertwined his fingers with hers. _

_The doors opened and the champions walked into the Great Hall to the applause of the other students. _

_The Hall was completely transformed into a winter wonderland; silver drapes hung from the huge windows, enormous snow-covered pines adorned the edges of the hall, and icicles hung from every fixture. _

_Harry barely had any time to soak in his surroundings before Professor Flitwick raised his wand and the music started. Paige looked at him expectantly, and he realized he was supposed to start dancing. He tentatively put the hand that wasn't holding hers on her waist. She draped her arm around his shoulder, and then they were dancing, Harry trying desperately to remember the dance instruction Professor McGonagall had given him. _

_Harry twirled Paige around, and her dress twirled with her. When she returned to his arms, she had a grin on her face. Harry smiled back, taking in how beautiful she was. _

_When it was time for the lift, he put his hands on her waist and hoisted her up. She jumped with him and landed gracefully back down, laughing. _

_Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw Dumbledore leading McGonagall onto the dance floor. Slowly the other students and teachers followed until the dance floor was packed with twirling couples._

"_Paige?" Harry asked as the song was ending._

"_Yes, Harry?" _

"_You look beautiful tonight." _

_A small smile spread on her lips. She leaned in and kissed Harry on the cheek. He blushed furiously as the next song started and they were once again twirling across the floor._

"Paige!" Alexandra called from down the hallway, running to catch up with her.

"What's up?" Paige asked, turning to face her friend.

"Draco and Harry are available, finally," Alexandra informed her cheerfully, looking carefully around at the others passing them by in the hallway. "They're coming to teach the DA," she whispered.

"Oh," Paige said, her tone neutral. "We should go, then." She started walking back the way Alexandra came, towards the Room of Requirement.

Alexandra grabbed her arm. "Are you okay?" She asked, concern in her voice.

Paige opened her mouth, then changed her mind and closed it. She nodded curtly. "I'm fine. Let's go, we don't want to be late."

Both girls hurried towards the DA meeting, activating their galleons to alert the other members as they went.

Harry and Draco stood off to one corner of the room, near the front. Alexandra and Paige made their way towards them, pushing through the crowd of DA members that was assembling near the center of the floor.

Draco noticed them first. "Alexandra. Paige." He nodded in greeting.

Harry looked up. "Glad you two could make it," he said warmly.

Alexandra nodded. Paige remained silent.

"It's great you two could come and teach the DA." Alexandra continued after a pause. "What are we teaching them today?"

Draco and Harry exchanged a glance.

"We were thinking maybe some offensive charms," Harry said. He turned to Paige. "I was thinking maybe you could help us with those, since those are your area of expertise...?" Harry trailed off.

Paige blinked slowly. "Of course." She said a little too coldly. "Although, I'm certain you are quite the field expert."

Tension crackled through the silence that followed.

"Umm, are you two going to be able to work together?" Draco asked awkwardly, breaking the tension.

"Of course." She repeated. She turned on her heels and walked towards the the front of the room, her blonde ponytail swishing behind her.

Harry stared after her. "Unclear."

Alexandra and Draco exchanged a look. Shrugging, they joined the two Gryffindors at the front of the room and started the meeting.

Harry watched as the DA members exited the Room of Requirement, his eyes scanning the room for one person in particular.

He gripped her elbow as she walked past him. "I need to speak with you." He whispered in her ear.

Paige shot him a glare before easily yanking her elbow out of his grip and leading the way towards a secluded corner of the room.

Harry caught Draco's glance as he was leaving. _Good luck, mate_. Draco mouthed as he and Alexandra departed.

He waited until the last member had left before speaking. "I'm sorry." He said, letting all the emotion into his voice.

"Sorry doesn't change what you did." Paige responded firmly.

Harry sighed. "I know."

"No." She said, shaking her head, her long golden ponytail swishing behind her. "You don't."

"Paige, I-" Harry started.

"You have no idea what you put me through." Paige interrupted. "Do you know what it's like to sit there, helpless, while the person you love the most is out there, waiting to be killed? To know that you are so close to losing someone you love, that in a blink of an eye they could be gone?!" She shouted.

"And you didn't even care." She was whispering now, hurt seeping into her words like welled up in her eyes. "You went out there that day without thinking about what that could've done to us_._"

Harry's heart fell as he realized what she was saying was true.

"I know this is a war. I know what is at risk here. And I know you are a crucial part in all this." She shook her head slowly. "But I can't be with someone who is always playing the hero."

She took a shaky breath and took a step closer to Harry. She reached her hand out and cupped Harry's face. Her watery green eyes bore into his.

She leaned in and kissed Harry on the cheek. Her eyelashes brushed his skin, leaving a tear behind.

"Sometimes things aren't yours to save, Harry." She whispered. And with that she was gone, and Harry was left standing alone, his heart torn.

**AN: Don't kill us! The summer was crazy, Snape'sPaige394 was off in another state, and I was doing an internship, so we're SORRY and don't kill us with fire, or pitchforks, or any of that sort. Review please! Pairry drama, for or against? How was the Ron riddikulusness?**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_The Yule Ball was in full swing, the Weird Sisters playing their most recent hit, "Do the Hippogriff" as the students laughed and swayed to the music. Hermione, out of breath from the energetic dance, sat down next to Alexandra and Blaise, both of whom were taking a break as well._

"_Hey Hermione," Alexandra greeted. "How's Victor?"_

"_Fine," Hermione wheezed a little, her cheeks pink. "He's just gone to get us some drinks."_

"_That's lovely," Alexandra grinned. "Uh oh," she warned, her smile fading. "Dunderhead jerkweed at 12 o'clock."_

_Hermione looked straight ahead, wincing as Ronald Weasley came swaggering up._

"_Hey 'Mione," he grinned, arrogantly pushing his hair back._

"_Ronald," she returned. "My name is Hermione, if you please." Blaise and Alexandra looked at each other, and back at Ron._

_Ron ignored her, deciding to address the others in front of him."Wong. Zabini," Ron acknowledged, following Hermione's gaze to the couple beside her._

"_Weasley," Blaise spat._

"_Thought you would've been Malfoy's girlfriend," Ron snarked, challenging Alexandra and Blaise by looking expectantly at their linked hands. Blaise stiffened._

"_You know, Weasley," Alexandra began, venom laced in her voice, "boys and girls can be _friends _without being boyfriend and girlfriend." Hermione looked at Alexandra, wide-eyed. She had never heard Alexandra speak with such hate. "But I suppose you wouldn't know that, since you don't have any friends."_

_Blaise and Hermione's mouths dropped open in shock._

"_Bugger off, Wong," Ron spat, glancing nervously back at Hermione._

"_Only if you do first, Weasley," Alexandra spat back at him. "Get out of my sight."_

_Ron, shamefully beaten by a girl, hunched over and walked away, glancing back at Hermione as he approached Lavender, who was near hysterics._

"_BYE!" Hermione said cheerfully._

"_Okay, that's it," Draco said tiredly as he plopped himself next to Hermione. "Ginny and Dean Thomas should just get together before she freaks and backs out. They've been eye-fucking for the last-"_

"_Like you and Harry?" Alexandra asked innocently._

"_ten min- _what?" _Draco sputtered._

"_Nothing," Alexandra smirked, and Blaise snickered behind her._

"_I can't believe that you would insinuate such a... such a..." Draco trailed off, trying to find the words. "Ugh! That's nasty."_

"_Quit while you're ahead, mate," Blaise laughed openly._

"_Do I have to prove that - ugh, you know what? I'll just - Damnit. Hermione, dance with me? Draco grumbled._

_Hermione hid her smirk behind her hand. "Of course, Draco."_

_Alexandra and Blaise snickered all the way._

_Draco led Hermione out to the middle of the dance floor. He hesitated when Hermione turned to him, but mentally shook himself and grabbed her waist as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and they started swaying to the slow song. _

_Draco's heart was hammering in his chest as he looked at Hermione. If he thought she looked beautiful from far away, she looked even more stunning close up. Draco Malfoy did not blush, but tonight, with Hermione Granger in his arms, he did. _

_Draco felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see Viktor Krum standing behind him with a scowl on his face. _

"_Excuse me, I vould like to donce vith MY date." Krum stated in a voice that barely suppressed anger. _

"_I believe you can wait until the next dance," Draco retorted, annoyed that they had been interrupted. Hermione's eyes were slowly widening._

"_I beleeve you con stop," Krum snapped._

"_Viktor," Hermione began._

"_I believe you can shove your Bulgarian Bonbon bum over for a few more seconds, eh?" Draco said icily, stepping away from Hermione._

_Viktor's eyes flashed angrily. "I beleeve you con eether take my vist in your vace, or let Hermy-own-ninny choose who she vants to donce vith!" Krum challenged. Draco turned to Hermione._

"_Well?" he asked softly._

"_Viktor, it's just one dance," Hermione reasoned. "I promise, the next one, we'll-"_

_Hermione didn't even finish her sentence before Krum's fist found it's place in Draco's eye._

"_VIKTOR!" Hermione shrieked, but Draco threw a punch into Krum's stomach. "DRACO!" Hermione shouted, "DON'T YOU DARE INCITE-"_

_Before anyone else could stop them, Viktor and Draco were out for blood, pummelling each other mercilessly. "STOP! STOP IT!" Hermione yelled, backing away quickly as they rolled towards her._

_McGonagall and company quickly made their way over to the scene, where all the students, Bulgarian, French, and English alike, were chanting "FIGHT! VIGHT! FIGHT!"_

"_Enough of this!" McGonagall shouted angrily, forcefully separating the two boys. "Karakoff, help me get the two-"_

"_Who threw the virst punch?" Karakoff asked dryly, standing away as McGonagall finally petrified the two boys._

"_Krum, sir," Hermione answered, her hair a mess and completely frazzled._

"_Is thees true?" Madame Maxine asked, aghast. Hagrid patted her shoulder._

"_Vell, I vill take care ov him," Karakoff nodded, and McGonagall allowed Karakoff to take Viktor to the side. Once Draco had been unpetrified, Hermione rushed over to him._

"_You really shouldn't have hit him back," she said softly as she examined his black eyes._

"_And be a cowardly snake? No," he smiled up at her, wincing as his muscles ached. "I learned to much Gryffindork bravery from you." Hermione smiled._

_And that's when Ronald Weasley decided to open his big, fat mouth._

"_Wow, 'Mione. Two boys fighting over _you_? Didn't think you were such a slut, but I guess I was wrong," he sneered._

_Draco, furious, stood up wobbily, strode right over to Ronald Dunderhead Weasley, and socked him right in the jaw._

"_Draco!" Hermione protested weakly, more concerned about Draco's bruised fist than Ron's jaw. McGonagall, who was busy diplomatically handling the Krum situation, noticed the scene but concluded she'd deal with it later. Mad-eye Moody, on the other hand, had another idea._

"_WEASLEY!" Moody roared, hobbling over, his eye rolling crazily. "THAT IS NO WAY TO SPEAK TO A LADY! DO YOU KNOW WHAT MEN ARE WHEN THEY'RE THAT DISRESPECTFUL?"_

_Ron cowered. "No…" he squeaked._

"_ANIMALS, WEASLEY! I think we'll make a DEMONSTRATION out of you!"_

_And so, Ronald Weasley was turned into a weasel. And Fred and George never let him live that down for the rest of his days._

"Again!" The words were spoken in a merciless hiss.

"_Crucio!_" Hermione and Blaise raised their wands at their separate targets and watched as the curse took effect.

Voldemort glided over when the curse ended and examined the two muggles lying twisted on the floor. The man lay on his back, sweat pouring down his forehead and drenching his shirt and blond hair, his eyes shut tight with pain, gasping for breath. The woman lay on her side, in the fetal position, and was deathly still, the torchlight shining off her dark hair.

"Blaise, cast it again." Voldemort commanded.

"But, my Lord-" Blaise started.

"AGAIN!" Voldemort roared.

"_Crucio!_"

The dark-haired woman opened her mouth and let out a bloodcurdling scream. Her back arched in agony as the curse seeped into her blood like poison, eyes wide and frightened.

Blaise waited for the signal from Voldemort to stop, but it did not come. He watched as the woman's eyes rolled back into her head and her muscles let go. Her body hit the stone floor with a sickening thud.

"Cease." Voldemort commanded. The woman on the floor lay still; Blaise could not detect the rise and fall of her chest.

Voldemort spoke to Hermione. "_Crucio _him."

Hermione raised her wand towards the gasping man on the floor.

"Not him." Voldemort hissed dangerously.

She turned around so she was facing Blaise. "Yes, my Lord." She raised her wand and pointed the end at Blaise's chest. "_Crucio._"

Blaise immediately fell to his knees, his wand crashing to the stone floor and rolling away. He let out a scream as the curse brought him to the ground. His body spasmed in agony as he tried to fight the curse, fight the pain. His heart raced as he clenched his jaw, trying to fight back another scream. White spots danced in his vision as it seeped into his body, his mind, playing his nerves like a violin. It crawled into his muscles and burrowed in his bones, setting fire to everything in its path.

He was pain.

He was...

Hermione dropped her wand to her side at Voldemort's command. She watched her friend lying still on the floor, sweat clinging to his skin, passed out from the pain, and tried to keep her face a composed, stoic facade. Slowly he came to, opening his eyes, red and bloodshot from the curse.

"Do not disobey my orders." Voldemort hissed, his soulless red eyes flashing with anger.

"Forgive me, my Lord." Blaise whispered.

"Again, Hermione." Voldemort commanded.

Hermione tried shoving the emotions racing through her brain aside as she raised her wand once more. Her voice sounded strange to her as she spoke the Unforgivable words.

Blaise's body was racked with pain once more. His back arched off the hard stone floor into the air. He clawed at his chest with his hands, trying to rip the pain away from his body like a cloak. He opened his eyes to see Hermione standing over him, her face emotionless as she watched him suffer.

_Save me! _Blaise pleaded, but his words were lost in his distorted brain.

Voldemort stared greedily at Blaise's twisted form, relishing in every scream, his red eyes soaking in the act of pure sadism.

Hermione almost broke as she watched her friend writhing in agony. _I am sorry_, she thought. It took all of her self control to keep her hand from trembling.

"Cease." Hermione immediately dropped her wand.

Blaise was still conscious this time, but barely. He lay curled up on the floor, whimpering quietly.

Voldemort's voice was cold as he said, "again."

Hermione raised her wand and performed the deed.

Blaise had no resistance left as the curse gripped his form. This time the curse went deeper, past his body, into his soul. He could feel the black tendrils wrapping around his essence, smothering it in its grasp. His mouth opened in a silent scream and his eyes bulged from his skull.

The curse now probed his mind. Thoughts, memories, emotions that he had tried to suppress fought their way to the surface.

_He was reliving it all again. Her face the day he left her. The betrayal in her eyes as she watched him go. The inevitability of his leaving that she could not possibly understand. _

And this, _this_ was more painful than anything the Cruciatus curse could ever physically deliver.

"Stand up." Voldemort's voice pierced through the fog.

"Yes, my Lord." Blaise whispered. He struggled to his feet and wordlessly retrieved his wand. He took his place next to Hermione.

Voldemort glanced at the two muggles, still lying on the ground.

"Kill them."

He turned around and glided out of the room as the torchlight was replaced with a flash of green light.

_Two hours later_.

Bellatrix burst through the double wooden doors, startling Blaise and Hermione, who were nursing each other's self-inflicted wounds from the _Cruciatus _curse.

"Give me your wands," Bellatrix commented lazily, holding out her hand. Blaise and Hermione, without glancing at each other, gave the crazed woman their wands. It seemed as if nonverbal and wandless magic were on the day's 'to learn' list. Hermione inwardly winced as Bellatrix's grimy hands wrapped around the slender vinewood.

"Now," Bellatrix smiled cruelly, conjuring two bath tubs, and filled them with water. "KNEEL!" she shouted, and Hermione and Blaise dropped to their knees in front of the tubs.

"Survive," she said simply, waving her wand so that their faces were both completely submerged in the water.

Hermione's nose was burning from the initial dunk, and her eyes stinging. She hadn't been prepared, and didn't have any air. Instead, she inhaled the water, making her dizzy as she choked. It seemed hours later when her head was finally thrown back from the water. She coughed up water, and a little bit of blood, too, gasping for air. Blaise was in no better shape.

"Again," Bellatrix flicked her wand, and Hermione, still, wasn't prepared, barely having gotten the chance to inhale any oxygen properly. Hermione tried to hold her breath and concentrate on a simple bubble charm, but the burning sensation and the instinct to cough was too much. Bellatrix tossed their heads back into the air, looking mildly disappointed at both of them.

"I thought you more capable," she sneered, particularly at Hermione. "Oh, it must be the mudblood bit, isn't it? Stopping you from a simple bubble charm? AGAIN!" she shrieked, dunking Hermione and Blaise's heads back into the water. Hermione's breathing had calmed down, so she was able to concentrate a little bit more, but she continued to feel disoriented. What was that incantation, again? Before she could form a coherent thought, however, her mind's focus slipped as her body ached for oxygen. Soon enough, Bellatrix allowed their heads to surface.

"LAZY, PATHETIC, INDOLENT LITTLE MUDBLOOD!" Bellatrix howled in Hermione's ear, and she fought the urge to wince. "AGAIN!" This time, Bellatrix personally shoved Hermione's face into the water, holding her head down and putting unnecessary pressure on Hermione's neck. _Ebublio!_ That's what the incantation was. _Ebublio, ebublio, ebublio_, she chanted. Nothing.

"AGAIN!" Bellatrix shrieked as she pulled Hermione's head up by the hair, and dunked her back in.

_Ebublio, ebublio, Merlin damn it, EBUBLIO!_

And finally, it worked. Hermione inhaled suddenly, her lungs filling with that beautiful, refreshing air. Hermione gasped, coughing a little, but able to breathe. Bellatrix jerked Hermione out of the water, and tossed her to the side. Hermione hit her head on the hard, marble floor, completely disoriented. She tried to sit up, but collapsed, feeling the world swim around her.

"Prissy little Italian baby," Bellatrix taunted Blaise. "Beaten by a wittle _Mudblood_?"

Blaise was infuriated, and Bellatrix repeated the same dunking process with Blaise until he, too, mastered the charm. Bellatrix vanished the tubs and dried the area, and pulled out the two students' left arms out from underneath their exhausted bodies.

"Congratulations, babies," Bellatrix hissed, pulling out an ugly, curved blade, and carved a spiralling circle underneath their dark marks. Hermione and Blaise were both too weak to even flinch or cry out at the pain, instead, giving in entirely to their personal agony.

"A few more marks like that, and you'll be the same rank as _me_," Bellatrix praised in her own, cruel way, displaying her scarred and ugly left arm. "Revel in your ascent to truly and fully serve our Lord."

Bellatrix disappeared in a whirl of black smoke, leaving the two sixth years to bleed.

**AN: And on that lovely ending, we finally reach our M rating. Hurrah for Ron's Riddikulusness (PurplePenguin13MI we simply adored your review). To our guest reviewer, we'll take the time to explain some things. First of all, in regards to Paige, we simply **_**hate**_ **Hinny. It just doesn't work. Ginny's always been more of a little sister than a potential love interest, so we needed a new character. (Cho Chang was a mess, let's not even **_**go**_ **there). We also loved the idea of a nicer Slytherin (Blaise), and he needed a love interest for betrayal purposes. Pansy was an absolute no-no, and for some reason the other Slytherin girls didn't really appeal to us. We do put a little bit of ourselves into our characters, because authors write what they know. As for your concerns about Dramione - we did start out more Harry centric, because that's where the whole AU starts from. We'll be seeing much more Dramione angst in later chapters, but again, this is a war fic. We have quite a bit more to reveal, so hang in there! Sorry we haven't updated in so long - we're super busy!**


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